The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1887-06-14

-. H. ID. James, late RoyaA Enrin-
"a y>as, was read al che Royal United
Service Institution, Major General u.
Give, Coumandant of the Staff Col
lege, in tie chair. In the course of
his exhaustive paper the lecturer
said:
The sudden, intensity, the CONVEX
B sion Of the shower Of bullets into a
binding rain, is to be obtained from
the magazine rifle alone Il is for
this gain we face the additional com
plication due to the repeating action,
1t Is for this great quality that the
nations Of Europe are spending mil
lions of money in the re-armament of
then infantry, and that we too must
follow their example.
THE ADVANTAGES OF THE MAGAZINE RIFLE.
The magazine rife has two advan-
Jages. Besides the one to which [
have already alluded there is the
moral support which it gives to the
soldier, who feels that he has a re-
serve Of power constantly at hand.
No breach action, however rapid, can
give the same rapidity so long as the
magazine supply lasts. In proper
reconstructed rifle the time taken to
press the cartridge into the barrel is
eliminated. Drawing back the action
cocks throws out the old case, brings
up a fresh cartridge, closing the
breech pushes the cartridge home,
which Is therefore never touched by
Ale mans hand, nor has he TO take it
from pouch to the breech. No single
loader can give that confidence winch
a man feels who has five or more shots
at his instant command. a repeating
rifle, therefore, is Of advantage botn
on the offensive and defensive.
Troops, whether acting on the one or
the other, have to pass through that
supreme moment when the combat
trembles in the balance, and to both
alike the special quality Of the maya
zine arm Is of the highest impor
tance. Conceive for a moment two
lines holding one another in close
action, one Is suddenly enabled to
quintuple its fre-rate. what viii be
the fate of the other? At times when
surprise is of moment, such as uoun-
. ter-attacks, it Is also of the utmost
value. To senuies, to small bodies
OF men acting by themselves, such as
accommodating parties of cavalry, the
use of repeater IS Of greatest assis-
tance.
THE MAGAZINE RIFLE N USE.
To anticipate little, allow me to
assume that we have a weapon Jhat
holds five or more cartridges in the
magazine, that the latter can be east
ly loaded, and that the rife can be
used as a single-loader. Under or
binary circumstances the rules of fire
discipline viii remain as heretofore.
Fire should be by yolleys alone, the
frequency of which will depend on
the range and object, but on the
offensive the final rush should be pre-
pared by the use of the magazine,
which should be reloaded the moment
the position IS carried. On the de-
fensive the magazine may be similar
ly employed, but possibly a little
more often and earlier-that Is, at
longer ranges when 1t can be rapidly
loaded. For instance, at the advanc-
ing troops during their rushes, when
they are so much more visible and
form so much better targets than
when lying down to fire The fire
during these transitory moments
should be intensified, because good
results may be obtained from it. In
fact, we may say that either on the
offensive or defensive the magazine1s
chiefly for the close combats, though
occasionally it may be used at longer
ranges. Should it ever be employed
for real long range? Rarely For
it would probably give rise to q great !
expenditure of ammunition without /
correspondingly adequate results.
Against favorable targets which from
their nature are exposed only for a
short time to fire it may be made use
Of For example, against masses OF |
infantry, the staff OF the enemy,
cavalry. or artillery Numbering
But it will always remain chiefly re |
served for the decisive stage, when its
proper employment may decide the
issue.
HOW ABOUT AMMUNITION?
VIII the introduction of repeaters
increase the expenditure of ammuni
ton? To a certain extent, yes.
Hence it is highly desirable to Tighten |
the cartridge. To this l shall allude |
further on. But as a practical fact
THE increased expenditure of ammu
milton is not so much due to the
magazine rife, which, if its employ
ment were limited to the last moment |
in fight, would not greatly increase
the number of rounds fired Rather
is it due to the fact to which | have
before drawn your attention in this
Institution, in the first instance, nine
years ago, that having rifles of long
range it would be very foolish to
limit their employment ito short dis
tances. The school of FIRE is gradu
ally gaining the day, to it belongs the
r I L, l. I =